Bubblegum Kisses
by alixxblack
Summary: Lily has just unpacked the last box from moving. James goes to brush his teeth when Lily decides to make cocoa. Perhaps unfortunately, she finds the answer to a question that she's been asking herself for a long time.


Disclaimer (1): I am not JKR, nor her published, and as such – all copyright retention applies. I am not writing this for fame or fortune, however…

Disclaimer (2): I am writing this for the Houses Competition being hosted by MoonlightForgotten.

* * *

 **Read & Enjoy**

* * *

"I think we've just unpacked the last box!" Lily hadn't resisted making her sigh dramatic and exasperated. The second they graduated Hogwarts, James made it a point to remind Lily that she was going home with him for good. It wasn't for a visit, it wasn't for a holiday; it was _forever._ Perhaps there was a war being waged beyond their front door, and fires burning down things they loved outside, but there were also things they loved doing inside.

For example, kissing.

James made it a pastime of his to sneak up behind Lily and kiss her so deeply that she honestly would forget what she had been tending prior to the interruption. Her brain would go fuzzy and her heart would race so loud she couldn't hear herself even think! Loving James was basically being in love with the earth itself.

James Potter: passionate, unpredictable, and _hers._

After sharing that they were officially unpacked, Lily met James at the couch where he'd been reading the Daily Prophet from the meeting with the Order earlier in the day. Once she was at the side of the couch, he jumped to his feet and embraced her with a smile.

Then he smashed lips to hers, showing her that – not only did he love her – but that he was grateful to still have her as well. James and Lily never let themselves forget how luck they were to be alive, and to still have the person they loved most. Too many others had lost that luxury.

After he let her drop back onto her feet there was a moment of awkwardness. Even though they'd been living together for several weeks, they travelled around so much for the Order that they didn't know what to do when they were finally at home and alone. There had been many times when Remus and Sirius would stay over. Remus would be humming the tunes of his favorite songs in the background while Sirius joked about the tension in the room. Suddenly there was nothing but the cracking of wood of their fireplace; "I'll go brush my teeth before bed."

Lily decided she was hungry, and thought she'd make something to eat. Having been raised in a Muggle home, cooking was not always a magical activity, and so she started by opening the refrigerator with her hands. As she stared at the nearly empty machine, she decided perhaps she'd just make a glass of cocoa instead. Knowing how much James liked to tell horror stories around the fire, she raced to the bathroom to offer him a glass before he brushed his teeth. She could think of no better way to spend the evening than listening to her best friend tell ridiculous stories that were more hilarious than scary.

Nothing could have prepared Lily for what she saw when she rounded the corner of the doorway, however, because she found that James was standing with his head tilted all the way back. Seeing that confused her enough. Then there was the matter of the open toothpaste tube hovering over his mouth. A glob of pink toothpaste fell from the tub into his mouth, straight onto his tongue!

"What are you doing, exactly?" Lily cringed at the possible response.

"Bw-uh-hin muh tuff?" The sound came out more as a question than anything she could actually understand. James paused to see if she would stay or if she would go, but Lily made her stance clear by when she propped herself against the doorframe. She needed to know what he was doing when she arrived.

James proceeded to poke out his tongue and scrub the toothpaste all over his tongue for a period of time that felt quite excessively. More odd than that, he continued to brush his teeth as any other normal person might. He did all of this as if there was nobody watching. It was as if this was his _routine_! Once he was done and started towards her, she asked him quickly; "Is that bubblegum toothpaste, by chance?

"I thought the color might've given it away." James jested at her gently.

A scoff parted her lips, which he took as an invitation to kiss them. The flavor that she associated specifically with him was bursting in a way she'd never known before – so apparently she'd not been kissing him after he'd brushed all these years. Still, she wasn't put off by the strange explanation behind his bubblegum kisses.

Lily watched the love of her life for a moment. He wasn't perfect, nor was he tolerable some days, but something about him was just _so right_ that she couldn't even find a way to make fun of him properly for applying the toothpaste to his tongue of all places. It was wrong but she loved it anyway.

"You're so weird, it's attractive, actually," she starts, "and I quite like it."

Though she feigned surprised when James arched his brows dramatically, she knew exactly what she'd started. A growl rumbled in his throat; "Show me how much."

It was certainly a suggestion of the intimate sort, but Lily had learned from the boys all those years at Hogwarts. She knew when to apply humor to a serious conversation. And so she remarked to him playfully; "I would but you already brushed your teeth. I'll have to enjoy the cocoa by myself."

* * *

 **Author's Note:**

 **Ravenclaw, Fourth Entry**

 **(Drabble/"You're so weird, it's attractive), 896 words**


End file.
